Late Night
by literallynoidea
Summary: Abbie can't sleep, so she goes to her kitchen and makes some tea to calm her thoughts. Ichabod joins her.


She let Ichabod stay with her for the night, ignoring the way he marveled at her apartment before showing him around the guest room. Ichabod gave her a formal goodnight, and she couldn't find it in her to laugh at how ramrod straight he was when he said it, instead giving him a quick nod and shutting the door.

She sighed, trudging her way to her room, peeling off her clothes ungracefully, and flopping onto her bed in her underwear.

She was so exhausted.

Abbie sighed, before getting up and lazily heading to the shower, wanting to sit in there and cry but no, if she broke down now, she'd never put herself together.

Her sister was missing.

She had finally truly admitted to herself that what she did was completely and utterly wrong, that she contributed to the ruination of her sister, and she had wanted to talk to her, to make a start at righting her everlasting list of wrongs and…

She's gone.

Jen had always been crafty. She knew how to get herself out of a sticky situation. How long had she been humoring these doctors? Security? The entire psych ward?

She sighed again, stepping out of the shower and toweling off, going through her entire nighttime routine, and before she knew it, she was in an oversized t-shirt and cotton shorts, lying in bed.

But she couldn't sleep.

Her thoughts were running rampant, concerned for her sister, _annoyed_ with her sister, angry at herself, Ichabod and the drama he brought into her life, Ichabod shirtless, nope, let's not go there, think of something else…

Moaning softly, she sat up.

There was no point in humoring herself here. She knew she wasn't going to get any sleep. Instead, she sat up and walked out of her room, into the kitchen, her bare feet padding across the wooden floor, and then curling slightly at the cold of the kitchen tile. She grabbed her kettle, filling it with water and setting it on the stove, turning it on.

Then she sat down at the kitchen table, wrapping her arms around herself and leaning her head against the table.

"I take it you can't sleep?"

Abbie shot up with a gasp, turning around.

"Jesus, Crane!"

Ichabod frowned from where he stood, draped in her ex's old shirt and pajama pants.

"You shouldn't say the Lord's name in vain."

Abbie rolled her eyes, turning back around. "Come join me, since you're up."

He obeyed, taking a seat opposite her. It was silent for a while.

"What ails you?" he asked softly.

She shrugged, not really in the mood to spill her guts. Ichabod wasn't having it.

"Come now. Is it the Sandman? Rest assured, Miss Mills, you needn't worry about him any longer. He was quite efficiently…dealt with."

They shared a smile, and it was silent for a moment once more.

"You sister, then."

Abbie sighed.

"She's a strong woman. She'll be fine." he spoke, trying to comfort her.

She glanced up at him, frowning. "That's what I'm worried about. She's strong, almost too strong, to have gotten through all this. But that strength was contained while she was…put away. Now she's running wild and free and…" she trailed off, glancing at her clasped hands.

"From what I've been told, this seems to have been elaborately planned. I'm sure she knows what she's doing, and perhaps that alarms you more."

Abbie stared at him, not knowing what to say to that. He opened his mouth to say more, but was interrupted by the whistling of the kettle. He glanced back at it, his eyebrows furrowed, and then watched Abbie get up and turn the stove off.

Ichabod's eyes were drawn to her bare legs and he coughed quietly before quickly turning around, face red.

Abbie looked over at him, confused, before shrugging and grabbing one mug, and then another as an afterthought, putting apple/cinnamon tea bags in and pouring the water, letting them sit for a while. Ichabod didn't turn around as she did so, keeping his gaze on his hands, before a mint green mug was placed in front of him.

Abbie held her mug carefully as she sat back down, closing her eyes as she took a long whiff of the steaming beverage with a small sigh. When she opened them again, Ichabod was gazing at her intently.

"What?" she asked, blushing a bit and quickly taking a sip.

He blinked, before grabbing his mug.

"It is nothing. Don't worry yourself."

Abbie snorted. "I wasn't worried."

She watched as he sniffed his drink, and seeming unperturbed by the smell, taking a tentative sip after. His eyes lit up.

"This is-

"Apple/cinnamon flavored tea. Pretty good, right?"

He nodded, the taste apparently enough to rob him of his normal eloquent speech. Ichabod sipped at his tea quietly, like the expert he probably was, while Abbie slurped a bit.

No worries.

"Interesting choice of attire, Miss Mills?"

Wait, what?

"Wait, what?" she asked.

"Your…bare legs…"

Oh, that.

She laughed. "You're one to talk."

Ichabod rolled his eyes. "That type of attire isn't safe for a woman-

"Why? Do you have no self-control? Would it be my fault if something happened?"

Ichabod could tell he crossed a line, and quickly back pedaled.

"No, no, you reserve the right to wear what you wish, especially in the comfort of your own home-

Abbie laughed loudly, loving the look of near panic on his face.

"It's alright Crane, don't worry about it."

"You mock me?" he asked, looking oh so very put out, and she couldn't help but laugh again.

"Relax. I mean, I didn't put this on with you in mind. And you've seen me in a bra. Can't handle a little leg?"

"I…I'm going to assume that by bra you mean your upper undergarment, and that was under…different circumstances. And I can handle…leg…" he trailed off, thinking about what he was saying and then turning a bright red.

Abbie giggled. "Get your head out of the gutter, Crane."

"I beg your pardon?"

She laughed again, his facial expressions nearly too much to handle, before finally getting a hold of herself and sighing happily.

"Don't worry about it." she said, taking another drink of her tea.

Ichabod stared for a while, before turning his attention to his tea as well. The two sipped in silence, thoughts consuming them for a while. Abbie interrupted the silence this time.

"What about you? Why can't you sleep?" she asked quietly.

He glanced up, swallowing carefully before speaking.

"My mind is on many things, both past and present."

Abbie stared at him, before cocking her head to the side in thought. He really did have a lot to think about. This man out of time, racing to save a world he didn't know. And his wife, trapped in limbo somewhere. And his friends, all gone. Dealing with so many changes so quickly had to be exhausting.

"You do have a lot going on, don't you?" she mumbled rhetorically, and Ichabod didn't answer, instead clenching his fingers against his mug,

The silence between them was bordering on uncomfortable, so Abbie stood up.

"Well, we should try and get some sleep anyways. We have an early start tomorrow…or later today, depending on how you look at it. You done with that?"

"Yes, thank you."

She grabbed her and Ichabod's mugs, making her way over to the sink and draining their contents, washing them out and setting them down, wiping her wet hands on her shirt.

Ichabod followed her out of the kitchen, and she turned the light off before walking to his room, standing just outside the door.

"Get some rest, that's an order." she commanded softly, looking up at him.

"You as well. You really shouldn't worry. All will be well with your sister." he replied, his voice low.

She stared up at him, and he moved his hand slowly, using his fingers to tentatively brush a strand of hair behind her ear that had fallen from the high ponytail. Her breath hitched, his hand remaining where it was, before he quickly retracted it. They both averted their eyes, and Abbie took a step back.

"Sleep well, Miss Mills." he whispered, entering his room and shutting the door softly.

Abbie stared at the door, taking a step closer and placing her hands against it, leaning her forehead to touch the wood gently.

Ichabod did the same.


End file.
